For Immediate Release
November 15, 2022
Gail Priday, A Soft White Morning, acrylic on canvas, 2022Juneau – Up Close and Under Foot, a solo exhibition of paintings by Fairbanks artist Gail Priday, opens Friday, December 2, 4:30–7:00 pm at the Alaska State Museum.
She will give a lecture about her work and painting process at 6:30 pm in the APK Lecture Hall.
Priday finds inspiration from the natural world, specifically the boreal forest. Her solo exhibition includes 33 paintings that depict “ever-changing treasures up-close and underfoot.”
She came to Alaska from the East Coast more than a decade ago and was immediately drawn to the forest floor.
“I knew I would love the mountains and expansive sky, but I did not expect to be so taken with the underbrush and fungus,” Priday explains. “The easily overlooked features of the landscape hold great significance to me. They suggest an extraordinary and active world that exists quietly beside my own.”
In her paintings, she combines elements of realism and imagination to portray fungus, lichen, leaves, and other life in the understory.
Priday will lead a youth holiday printmaking workshop for ages 7 and up on Saturday, December 3, 10:00 am-noon. Space is limited and registration is encouraged – reserve your spot by filling out the online registration form.
Up Close and Under Foot runs through February 2, 2023.
Alison Bremner Nax̲shag̲eit’s solo show Midnight at the Fireworks Stand is also currently on exhibit at the State Museum. Bremner considers the ways in which western contact continues to shape Indigenous communities, from potlaches to the poverty-to-prison pipeline.
Gail Priday and Alison Bremner Naxshageit are two of six artists selected for the Alaska State Museum 2020-2023 Solo Artist Exhibition Series, along with Ben Huff, Sonya Kelliher-Combs, Jannah Sexton-Atkins, and Mitch Watley.
The Alaska State Museum hosts a spectacular permanent collection as well as temporary exhibitions. For museum hours, rates, and more information, visit museums.alaska.gov. The museum phone number is (907) 465-2901.
A person experiencing a disability who needs accommodation for events hosted by the Alaska State Library, Archives, and Museum can contact the Division’s ADA coordinator at (907) 465-2912. Please contact us a week in advance so we can make any necessary arrangements.
Media Contact:
Amy Phillips-Chan, PhD
Director
907.465.2911
amy.chan@alaska.gov
lam.alaska.gov
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